Electromagnetic Scattering From 3D Layered Structures With Randomly Rough Interfaces: Analysis With the Small Perturbation Method and the Small Slope Approximation

We propose a theoretical study on the electromagnetic wave scattering from three-dimensional layered structures with an arbitrary number of rough interfaces by using the small perturbation method and the small slope approximation. The interfaces are characterized by Gaussian height distributions with zero mean values and Gaussian correlation functions. They can be correlated or not, isotropic or not. The electromagnetic field in each medium is represented by a continuum of plane waves and a perturbation theory is used for solving the boundary value problem and determining the first-order scattering amplitudes by recurrence relations. The scattering amplitudes under the first-order small slope approximation are deduced from results derived from the first-order small perturbation method. We analyze with the small slope approximation model the combined influence of the anisotropy and cross-correlation upon the electromagnetic signature of a natural stratified structure.